Oh baby! Have we got a lot to share about dogs and babies. This blog is written by Certified Professional Dog Trainer Jenn Merritt and her dog Royal. Jenn specializes in helping expectant pet parents and pet parents with new babies adapt to life with their dogs. Royal specializes in squirrel investigation, attempted motorcycle herding, and sleeping belly up.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Dude, where are my feet?

One important thing in agility is for a puppy to know where his feet are. That may sound silly, but if I'm not aware of my feet, they could knock into the poles as I am going over a jump or I could lose my balance on obstacles like the dog walk. Learning where my feet are gives me awareness and helps my balance in agility and in general.One of the objects that can help me learn about the placement of my feet is a ladder placed on the ground. I step through the rungs one by one, lifting and placing each foot. Jenn and Eric built me my own plastic PVC ladder over the weekend. Why not just use a real ladder? Jenn wanted a lightweight ladder she could take with her so her canine clients could use it too. It is made of 1" PVC pipe, four PVC elbows, and 16 T-joints and cost about $20 for the materials. Eric cut the pieces with a saw and Jenn put the ladder together. She got instructions here on how the build a PVC ladder.